Brushed my teeth again. Debated whether I needed another shave. Cursed myself for not getting a haircut. Looked at my watch. Compared it to the time o... the clock. Checked myself over in the mirror to ensure I hadn’t spilled toothpaste down my fresh shirt. Generally worried. You know what I mean. Wanting to look your very best. You must have been there yourself sometime. Maybe your Prom? That was probably the last time I’d been quite that skittish; even my formal interview for my current. Unwillingly, she dumped the slipper back to the butler andreturned to her position.The next contestant, Portia McDonald suffered the samehumiliation as her predecessor when she refused to give up herdisastrous attempt of splitting the slipper into two pieces offibreglass.Stanley pretended to wipe off his sweat on his forehead andbroadcasted, "Whew! Let's hope our last contestant, Miss MaryAgnes Watson will end our search for Cinderella!"Mary Agnes Watson was the one who badmouthed about us to. I took it and as I tried to stand, I felt my legs sore and other parts sorer. I grimaced and Jeff, basically, said, ‘I told you so.’ He led me to the bathroom and drew a bath for me saying, “This will make you feel better.” The bath sounded good, but I wanted him more. I sighed and watched him. As I stepped into the bath, I noticed the blood trailing down my leg. I asked for some toilet paper and Jeff obliged. I rubbed away the blood and tossed the paper in the trash. When I was fully in the. She’d changed quite a bit.“What’re you reading, Mom?” Daniel walked into the library. A clock somewhere in the house struck twelve, lumbering chimes. Daniel thought it likely the clock belonged to the Palmers and to another time. He was pretty sure his family didn’t own a chiming clock. He wondered if anyone else heard it. He closed the door behind him and moved toward his mother.“It’s called First Love.” Julie took off her reading glasses and looked up at her son standing near the closed.